Hi Alison! I am Allison! Nice to meet you! We have lots in common in addition to our name, as I am the Primary Pres in my ward AND a LAP-BANDER. I had my surgery in November of 2003. I have lost over 80 lbs. and have not had a bit of problem. It has been slow, but steady. Feel free to email me with any questions. I wish you the best! Allison in Utah

Ali, Glad to meet ya! Congratulations on your surgery and hope that it goes well for you. I had gastric bypass almost 13 months ago and I feel great. I have lost about 110 lbs. depending on the scale and I have a renewed energey. Don't hesitate to chime in and share the gospel and uplift others here. It is almost like doing visiting teaching outside of your ward. Good luck Donna

Thank you Sherrie, I have been beating my self up most my life. And lately I have been wondering why I did this to myself. (Health reasons) I want to be able to play with my grandkids. I am going to copy and put this up so I can see it each day. 6 weeks out have lost only 33 Lbs I was wondering what I was doing wrong, when I have so much trouble getting food down. Guess I will just stop negotive thoughts and look at the bright side. Thanks again Kaye

Hi Ali, Welcome to this board. As you can see we kind of go through spurts, very active and then we go through a spurt of being quite quiet which is where we are at right now. Jump right in and throw in your 2 cents. Get to know us and we'll get to know you. I had an RNY done lap in March of 2004. So I don't have any advice or information on the procedure you chose. To date I've lost almost 145 pounds (depending on which scale I'm on). For the first time in my adult life I weigh 120 lbs. I can wear a size 6 dress (compared to the size 24 I was in before surgery). My jeans are a size 8 or 9 depending on the brand. I wear a size small blouse. This surgery was the best thing I've ever done. Was it easy? Not always. Would I do it again? In a heart beat. I notice that people treat me differently than when I was a person "of size". I, too, am in the Primary and have been for the last 9 years. I teach in the Valiant Primary. I used to be the music chorester (sp). Primary is where my heart is. Welcome to the board Ali and I hope you can get this board hopping again. Melody

Hi everyone! Sorry I have spent so much time lurking lately - between working full time and working part time and going to school full time I barely have time to breathe little alone post. But, I did have some time today - I was reading on line blogs and came across this entry, which really touched me - thought I would share it with you. This was written by someone named Hanae. We can be our own best friend or our own worst enemy. Which are you? I think for the most part I am my own best enemy. I can beat myself up over the smallest things. Being your own enemy can include some of the following: Beating your self up: Have you ever noticed that we say things to ourselves that we would NEVER utter to another human being. Why is that? Defeatist Attitude: I won't succeed so why try. I won't keep up the exercise routine so why start one. All or Nothing Attitude: I can't walk the 5 miles I use to walk a day so I won't walk at all. Isolationist Attitude: You don't go out because you don't want to deal with people, or you are afraid of how you look. Avoiding people. You also don't go out to avoid food situations. (Good Luck! That stuff is everywhere!) Now on the upside, I think being your own best friend means you need to be able to cheer yourself for your victories big and small. Put negative thoughts aside when they come and replace them with a positive. "Yes I ate a piece of cheesecake....no big deal....I did throw the rest of it out YEA ME! Find some time for YOU! You are important enough to find time in the day, or week, to exercise, knit in peace, read a book or take a long hot bubble bath. (Note I did put exercise first, because it is something we ALL need to do at least a few times a week) Pamper yourself, we have learned to pamper others and some of us don't think to pamper ourselves. Indulge in a nice lotion, a salt or sugar scrub to make your skin glow. I had a basket full of scrubs and lotions that I get from friends and family and NEVER used, I have started to use them more often. Feel Good! Just because we are pounds away from our goals doesn't mean we can't start treating ourself like the DIVAS we are. Dress the part! Your body image will not change if you don't change your wardrobe to fit your changing body. Repeat after me "THRIFT STORE" Great bargains and nice clothes. Take advantage of clothing swaps hosted by your surgeons or support groups. This is one of the things I have been doing regularly. Changing out the sloppy wardrobe for nice things to wear! Meals: Take time for your meals, ( and I am talking to myself here first and most) they are very important. Enjoy them! Now I don't mean be a glutton, I mean sit down use nice dishes and silverware if you have it. You are not at a trough, nor are you a horse with a feed bag strapped onto your face. SIT! RELAX! EAT! Try to schedule your meals and stick to it! Plan Ahead! Prepare a "War Bag". This is a bag that you pack each day and carry with you every where. . If you have your "War Bag" you won't be tempted to pull through a drive-thru. Now pack light! In this bag is a serving or two of a healthy snack to get you through to your next scheduled meal without turning to caniballism or knocking over some poor kid for his hotdog. Don't be your own enemy....Be your own Bestest Ever Friend! Hope you enjoyed this - I hope to talk to yall more frequently now that I quit my part time job so I am working ft and going to school ft but not working pt too, that is about 20 extra hours a week I have now - yay!! -Sherrie